Why do people take barley?

People also take barley to try to promote weight loss or help prevent some types of cancer.

Barley is probably effective at reducing total cholesterol and LDL "bad" cholesterol. It may also lower triglycerides and increase HDL "good" cholesterol levels, but the research has been mixed. How much it lowers cholesterol may depend upon how many grams you eat. The effect may also be less when barley is highly processed.